Winner Of The Year in Architectural Design: Bat Trang Ceramic Community House, Photo credit: 1+1>2 Architects

The Design Educates Awards, which annually recognize the best projects that respond to complex social and environmental contexts and carry educational value, just announced the results of the 2023 edition. The awards look for projects that will have a lasting impact on users and the environment, and showcase the world's best ideas and realizations that can educate. NPO Aoyama Design Forum (ADF) proudly supports the Design Educates Awards 2023 as a media partner.

Each year, the esteemed judges select outstanding ideas and implementations in architectural design, product design, universal design, and responsive design. The 2023 edition Jury was joined by Prof. Toyo Itō, Prof. Anna Herringer, Prof. Masayo Ave, Prof. Joyce Hwang, Prof. Achim Menges, Lucy McRae, Julie Payette, David Basulto, Han Wenqiang, and Dr. Peter Kuczia. In addition to the general evaluation, the student project with the highest score was awarded the label of Emerging Designers. Parallel to the Jury's evaluation, representatives of Solarlux will select the laureates of Solarlux Choice.

Gold Prize in Architectural Design: Fjordenhus, Photo credit: Studio Other Spaces

Entries were evaluated based on the following criteria: overall idea and implementation, the potential for educational influence, effectiveness and quality of the informative layer, aesthetics, quality of presentation, visionary approach, originality, feasibility, and comprehensiveness. In addition, the submitted ideas had to refer to the awards’ theme and highlight the educational potential of design.

Winner Of The Year in Product Design: DiFOLD Origami Bottle, Photo credit: DiFOLD

Design that educates is a broad concept. Art, and by extension architecture and design, do not always use messages written in black and white. Often their educational role is subtle but significant. Educational projects are designed to respond to social and environmental problems and bring us closer to sustainability. The "Design Educates Awards" recognize work that can change our behavior - and thus the world - even if that change is quiet and incremental.

Gold Prize in Product Design and Winner Of The Year in Responsive Design: Releaf Bags, Photo credit: Releaf Paper

The initiators of the idea of the community of visual artists and the prizes they award do not set a rigid framework or barriers. They want to see in the submitted projects added values with a long-term effect, which take into account the growing complexity of our lives. It's not just about beautiful, aesthetically and technically pleasing designs. Rather, it is about the impact of the buildings, objects or items on their users and the environment.

Gold Prize in Responsive Design: Stomata: Optimizing Building Energy Retrofits Through Cyber-Physical Adaptive Spaces, Artificial Intelligence, And Occupants’ Biosignals, Photo credit: Washington State University

All participants in the award ceremony are invited to attend the award ceremony and architecture in the foyer of the conference to meet with other participants, judges and organizers. The award ceremony will take place as part of the Architecture in Foyer 2023 global conference on September 28-29, 2023 at the Solarlux campus in Germany (Melle, Lower Saxony, Germany). The event will be hosted by Solarlux GmbH (the strategic partner of the award ceremony). It will include an exhibition of the results of the DEAwards, lectures by renowned architects and designers, presentations by the award winners, workshops and networking opportunities. Participation in the awards ceremony is free of charge (registration is required).

Gold Prize in Universal Design + Emerging Designer: WoodenWood Chair, Photo credit: Canberra Design Lab

In addition to attending the conference, the winners will have the opportunity to present their projects at an exhibition in the Solarlux Campus building. This exhibition has a special meaning as it will take place in front of the most outstanding architects and designers who deal with the additional values of design and architecture. In addition, this exhibition is an opportunity for in-depth discussions, the development of new ideas and establishing contacts with people around the world who are similarly thinking about leaving a lasting, meaningful mark.

Silver Prize in Architectural Design: PREMIER OFFICE, Photo credit: TROPICAL SPACE

Winning projects find their place in a book summarizing each year's awards. It's a finely edited book whose pages feature handwritten reflections from judges and mentors on design, education, and innovation alongside the participants' work.

Honorable Mention in Architectural Design + Solarux Choice: Ressurrection Chapel, Photo credit: LP architektur ZT GmbH

Winners also receive a lifetime title, label, and certificate that proves their project's uniqueness. One of the most important benefits of the awards is exposure to possible clients and collaborators. In addition, the laureates also receive a gift certificate from v2com newswire, the world's largest specialized media network publishing the most prestigious architecture and design publications.

Silver Prize in Architectural Design: NONSPACE, Photo credit: On Architects Inc.

Gold Prize in Responsive Design: RADIO GARAGE, Photo credit: studio design & architecture O. M. Shumelda

The Design Educates Awards is organized by Laka Foundation, a nonprofit and nongovernmental organization. The inspiration for the awards theme comes from the research called Educating Buildings (Bildende Bauten) by Dr. Peter Kuczia.

The awards ceremony would not be possible without strategic partner Solarlux, the Architecture in the Foyer conference and Laka Perspectives. The media sponsors for the 2023 edition were ArchDaily and designboom. Media partners for the awards ceremony were World Architecture Community, Architonic, TOPYS, world-architects.com and ADF. The v2comawards ceremony wouldv2comwould not have been possible without strategic partner Solarlux, the Architecture in the Foyer conference, and Laka Perspectives. The media sponsors for the 2023 edition were ArchDaily and designboom. Media partners for the awards ceremony were World Architecture Community, Architonic, TOPYS, world-architects.com and ADF. The awards ceremony also featured a newswire partnership with v2com.